Mexico nabs US-born son of Jalisco cartel boss
MEXICO CITY: The US-born son of the powerful Jalisco New Generation drug cartel leader was arrested Tuesday, armed with an assault rifle bearing his nickname ‘El Menchito’ and appearing to have had plastic surgery.
The arrest of 25-year-old Ruben Oseguera Gonzalez, considered the group’s second-in-command, is a blow to a gang that has become public enemy number one after deadly attacks on police and soldiers this year.
The son of Nemesio ‘El Mencho’ Oseguera was captured in a car in a dawn operation by police and soldiers in Zapopan, a suburb of Jalisco state’s capital Guadalajara, “without a shot fired,” said National Security Commissioner Monte Alejandro Rubido.
The younger Oseguera was with his brother-in-law and the pair were armed with four grenades and four assault rifles, including an AR-15 with ‘El Menchito’ (Little Mencho) engraved on one side and on the other the cartel’s initials CJNG, the number ‘02’ and the abbreviation ‘Jr.’
Oseguera Gonzalez “was keeping a very low profile to try to go unnoticed, which is why he lacked a security detail during his arrest,” Rubido said.
“It’s important to note that Oseguera Gonzalez showed signs of recently having undergone a nose operation,” he said, before showing photos of the suspect with a bandaged nose.
It is the second time that authorities have arrested Oseguera Gonzalez.
He was captured in January 2014, which prompted the cartel to burn vehicles in Guadalajara that day, but released almost a year later by a judge who cited a lack of evidence.
Rubido said Oseguera Gonzalez regained his Number Two status after leaving jail to reclaim his role as ‘coordinator’ of drug trafficking to the United States and oil thefts.
“It’s a very important arrest,” said Javier Oliva, security expert at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
“It is without a doubt a blow that can diminish the cartel’s strength.”
Oseguera Gonzalez was born in California, meaning he has dual US-Mexican citizenship, according to Rubido. His father served nearly three years in prison in the United States in the 1990s for distributing heroin.
The western state of Jalisco is the bastion of the New Generation, which has killed some 30 police officers and soldiers since March and on May 1 downed a military helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade.
Federal police killed 42 suspected cartel members on a ranch in the neighbouring state of Michoacan on May 22. — AFP
It’s a very important arrest. It is without a doubt a blow that can diminish the cartel’s strength. Javier Oliva, security expert at the National Autonomous University of Mexico